The Hughes Brothers

Keanu Reeves in Talks for AKIRA? [UPDATED]

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: May 6th, 2011 at 11:04 am

The live-action version of Akira may actually be happening. After Warner Bros. secured a co-financer for the $230 million pricetag (Legendary Pictures, who just recently backed out of the deal), and Harry Potter screenwriter Steve Kloves turned in a rewrite of the script that had everyone eager to get going, producers began searching for their cast. Directors the Hughes brothers have been searching for an A-lister with global appeal to star in the flick (you don’t gamble that amount of money without ensuring that you’re gonna rake in serious international revenue), but for a while it seemed like they were searching in vain.

Now, Vulture reports that Keanu Reeves is in very early talks to take on the starring role in the film. Based upon the manga and the 1988 anime adaptation, Akira centers on teenager Shōtarō Kaneda and his quest to stop his friend Tetsuo from destroying Neo-Tokyo. Hit the jump for more on the project.

[Update: Heat Vision reports that Reeves is in talks for the role of Kaneda, the gang leader.]

HARRY POTTER Screenwriter Steve Kloves to Work on AKIRA Script

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 18th, 2011 at 11:05 am

Warner Bros. has hired Harry Potter screenwriter Steve Kloves to do a polish on the script for the Hughes Brothers’ adaptation of the Japanese manga Akira.  For those unfamiliar with the manga and the 1988 anime adaptation, the story centers on teenager Shōtarō Kaneda and his quest to stop his friend Tetsuo from destroying Neo-Tokyo.  Per Variety, “the latest version of the script was penned by Albert Torres (Henry Poole Is Here), with earlier drafts by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby and Gary Whitta.”  The problem is that “polish” is a very flexible word when it comes to script work and there aren’t any details on what Kloves’ polish will entail.  However, since Kloves has done strong work on the Harry Potter films (he wrote all of them except for Order of the Phoenix), he seems like the right guy to take a crack at helping to condense the six-volume manga into a live-action feature film.

As we reported yesterday, Warner Bros. won’t greenlight the film until they can attach a major star to play Kaneda.  Strangely, Vulture’s story said that Warners was courting Brad Pitt for Kaneda (he passed on the role), which could mean that the script has re-tooled the character to be significantly older.

Mila Kunis to Play Wicked Witch of the West in Sam Raimi’s OZ, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL; Plus Behind-the-Scenes Wrangling on AKIRA

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 17th, 2011 at 2:46 pm

Mila Kunis has signed on to play Theodora, the Wicked Witch of the West in Sam Raimi’s Oz, The Great and Powerful.  Vulture reports that James Franco, who was previously in talks to play the Wizard, decided to sign on once Kunis came on board.  This new spin on The Wizard of Oz centers on the eponymous character’s origin as well as the backstory to Glenda, the Good Witch of the North, and Evanorah, the Wicked Witch of the East (aka the Wicked Witch of Getting Smushed by Dorothy Gale’s House).

Interestingly, Kunis was considering re-teaming with The Hughes Brothers (The Book of Eli) to play Kei, the love-interest of main character Kaneda, in his adaptation of the acclaimed manga/anime Akira.  According to Vulture, Warner Bros. was willing to have Kunis play the part but only if they could get a major star to play Kaneda due to the project’s hefty price tag.  The role was offered to Brad Pitt (who is waaaay too old to play the teenage Kaneda of the manga) but he passed and therefore the project can’t start because Warners needs to find an actor who’s right for the part (read: can draw a worldwide audience) and available (although with no set start date, it seems like the project would be built around the lead actor’s availability). Faced with an unknown start-date for Akira and a July start for Oz, Kunis chose the latter.

James Franco to Star in AKIRA?

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: February 11th, 2011 at 3:35 pm

It looks like the big screen adaptation of the manga Akira may have found its star. A live-action version of Akira has been in the works for a while now, and most recently the Hughes brothers (The Book of Eli) were tapped to helm the project. Now, they may have found their lead. James Franco is apparently in talks to star in the film. Fair warning: there’s been no official confirmation that Franco is circling the project, so this could turn out to just be a rumor, but Just Jared is saying he’s very much involved.

Akira tells the story of a biker living in New Manhattan who saves his friend from a medical experiment. Zac Efron was the last actor rumored to be taking on the role. Franco’s name most recently came up regarding Sam Raimi’s Oz, the Great and Powerful. He’s apparently in talks to star in that film, and has also been rumored to be looking at the Linda Lovelace biopic Lovelace. The actor/director/writer/student will next be seen hosting the Academy Awards with Anne Hathaway on February 27^th. I think we can all agree that Franco really likes doing things.

Has Zac Efron Been Offered the Lead Role in AKIRA?

by Ramses Flores    Posted: November 5th, 2010 at 12:26 pm

Before jumping into this, let’s make it clear this is just a rumor.  But according to /Film, Zac Efron (Hairspray) is apparently being offered the lead role in the Hughes Brothers (Book of Eli) upcoming live-action adaptation of the much beloved anime and manga, Akira.  For more on Akira, you can hit the jump to find out what we know about the project so far – which includes what Akira producer Andrew Lazar told us when we interviewed him earlier this year:

THE BOOK OF ELI Blu-ray Review

by Ben Begley    Posted: June 16th, 2010 at 7:01 am

I want to first start out by saying Matt Goldberg wrote a dynamite review when The Book of Eli was in theaters and I agree with him completely.  What could have been just a standard action flick, ends up being a soulful exploration of one man’s quest to guard a book at all costs, with loads of awesome cinematography and action to keep even die-hard action fans satisfied.  More after the jump.

Hughes Brothers Set to Direct Live-Action AKIRA Remake for Warner Brothers

by Nicole Pedersen    Posted: February 10th, 2010 at 12:26 pm

While The Book of Eli is not yet the runaway blockbuster that Warner Brothers may have hoped for, the studio is apparently satisfied enough with the film’s directors to offer them a crack at one of the most prized scripts on the WB development slate. According to Vulture, The Hughes Brothers have been tapped to direct the live-action adaptation of the manga-turned-anime-classic, Akira. You know, the one with the killer bikes? and the creepy kid? and the, oh hell… TETSUUOOOOOOOOOOO!!  Details after the jump.

THE BOOK OF ELI Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 15th, 2010 at 12:41 am

I loves me a good western and The Book of Eli fits the bill.  Don’t let the post-apocalyptic setting fool you; The movie opens on a shot of a six-shooter, the main character (Denzel Washington) is headed west and doesn’t reveal his name until the end of the movie (thus making him that old west archetype, “The Stranger”*), an old saloon, and other trademarks of the western genre along the way.  But the post-apocalyptic setting provides a nice twist by removing almost all modern technology except for a heavy arsenal of weapons…and an iPod.  The Hughes Brothers have made a well-shot, well-edited, and exciting film, but it also features a very heavy-handed religious message.  It’s a hurdle, but The Book of Eli manages to clear it.

New Behind-the-Scenes Featurette on the Fight Scenes in THE BOOK OF ELI

by Matt Currie    Posted: December 24th, 2009 at 12:36 pm

A behind-the-scenes video detailing the stunts, particularly the fight sequences, in the Hughes Brothers’ upcoming The Book of Eli recently popped up on Yahoo! Movies. Basically, it’s 2 ½ minutes of directors Albert and Allen Hughes, star Denzel Washington, and stunt coordinator Jeff Imada (fight coordinator for the last two Bourne flicks) talking about standard stuff like the intensity of the sequences and how amazing Denzel was at learning the techniques/doing his own stunts. Toward the end, they also get into some semi-interesting analysis of Eli’s fighting style and how it relates specifically to the character and his motivation. If you check out the vid, you might also catch a few non-behind-the-scenes clips that weren’t in the trailers.

Poster for THE BOOK OF ELI Starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, and Mila Kunis

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 25th, 2009 at 1:24 am

A new poster for the upcoming post-apocalyptic action flick The Book of Eli has come online.  The film stars focuses on a lone hero (Denzel Washington) who guards the Book of Eli, which provides knowledge that could redeem society, but a despot (Gary Oldman) of a small, makeshift town plans to take possession of the book.  Directed by The Hughes Brothers (From Hell), the film co-stars Mila Kunis and will hit theaters on January 15, 2010.  Check out the poster after the jump.

New Trailer for THE BOOK OF ELI Starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, and Mila Kunis

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 25th, 2009 at 10:51 am

I’m loving these serious, dramatic actors kicking ass in action movies.  For Liam Neeson it was a new thing but Denzel’s a veteran with “Crimson Tide” and “Training Day” and “The Preacher’s Wife”.  But he’s taking it to a whole new level with “The Book of Eli” which should really just be called, “Denzel Washington Fucks Up Everyone,” The movie looks like it has a cool western-vibe to it except the protagonist has a clear mission from the start.  The trailer doesn’t really tell you anything about the movie beyond Denzel protects book, Gary Oldman wants book, Denzel fucks up everyone.  Works for me.

Check out the trailer after the jump.  “The Book of Eli” hits theatres on January 15^th, 2010.

First Trailer for THE BOOK OF ELI Starring Denzel Washington

by Nicole Pedersen    Posted: July 23rd, 2009 at 11:28 pm

In advance of Friday’s Comic-Con panel, Warner Brothers has unleashed the first trailer for the new Denzel Washington pic, “The Book of Eli”, onto the internet.  The film stars Washington as a survivor of the apocalypse (which apocalypse? THE apocalypse, duh!) who finds himself in possession of a certain book which may hold the key to mankind’s survival.  “Eli” was directed by The Hughes Brothers and makes good use of the washed-out color palette that the apocalypse seems to favor.  “Book of Eli” won’t hit theatres until January 10th, 2010 but you can get your doomsday thirst quenched right now by checking out the trailer after the jump…

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